Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Shares Gap Down - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Afya shares fell 5.5%, opening at $12.21 versus the prior close of $13.00, with the stock last trading near $12.27.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: the consensus rating is “Hold”, with five Hold, one Buy, and one Sell rating, while the average price target is $17.75.
• Afya’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations on earnings, reporting $0.43 per share versus a $0.40 estimate, although revenue of $187.8 million was below the $189.62 million consensus forecast.

Afya Limited (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Monday. The stock had previously closed at $13.00, but opened at $12.21. Afya shares last traded at $12.27, with a volume of 182,280 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bradesco Corretora upgraded shares of Afya to an "outperform" rating and set a $17.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research cut shares of Afya from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Afya from $21.50 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Afya from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Afya from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $17.75.

Afya Trading Down 5.5%

The stock has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a PE ratio of 7.48 and a beta of 0.35. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.34. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.03. Afya had a return on equity of 17.58% and a net margin of 20.55%.The company had revenue of $187.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $189.62 million. Equities analysts forecast that Afya Limited will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Afya news, VP Lélio de Souza, Jr. sold 36,204 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $543,060.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Afya

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Afya during the second quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new stake in Afya in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $325,000. Finally, Banco BTG Pactual S.A. purchased a new stake in Afya in the 4th quarter worth approximately $462,000. 88.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Afya

Afya Limited is a Brazilian medical education and technology company that operates an integrated platform for physicians and medical students. The company provides education and professional development throughout the medical career cycle, from undergraduate training and residency preparation to continuing medical education and specialization programs.

Afya's offerings include medical schools, preparatory courses, postgraduate and continuing education programs, digital learning tools, and clinical practice technologies.

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